Set post Season 2 finale. Stiles is having a rough time at home and finds himself going to Derek for help in Scott's absence. He doesn't expect for Derek to end up turning to him for support, leading to something more than just friendship between them. Slow, slow, fluffy slow build! *Likely to be canon divergent for s3*

Stiles wandered in to the kitchen, pulling open the refrigerator and staring blankly at the contents. He heard the front door open and close, heard his dad's keys hitting the table in the hall way.

"You had lunch yet?" His dad asked as he stepped into the kitchen. Stiles shook his head, grabbing a can of Monster and closing the fridge door.

"Not really hungry." He muttered between sips.

"So you ate breakfast this morning?"

"I had a can of this and some skittles." Stiles replied, sitting down at the breakfast bar and pulling the ring pull off his can. He began tapping it against the surface of the breakfast bar, looking down at the can as he felt his dad watching him.

"Well how about I fix you a sandwich then and we can talk about the terms of your punishment and the importance of a balanced meal."

Stiles perked up; it had been two weeks since the embarrassing grounding incident and he was itching to get out of the house, even if it did mean choking down an unwanted sandwich.

"I want it all eating." His dad passed him a turkey sandwich and leant on the breakfast bar, watching him. Stiles frowned at the sandwich, pulling off a corner and shoving it in his mouth; it had been a while since skipping meals had been an issue. Or, he corrected himself, there was so much else going on that his dad had let the not eating often enough thing slide.

"Can't I stop the tablets, just for the summer?" He asked through a mouthful of bread and turkey meat.

"I don't think that's a good idea, do you?" His dad replied.

"I didn't have any when...when I was out of the house and I was fine. I bet I ate a whole lot more then too."

"And that had nothing to do with the pot you were smoking?"

"No." Stiles flushed, cramming more sandwich into his mouth as a distraction. He brushed the crumbs off his hands and got up to put his plate in the sink.

"We can discuss the tablets another day." His dad told him, gesturing for him to go through to the den. He felt his dad's hand on his shoulder, gently pushing him down onto the couch.

"So...are you ungrounding me?" He looked up hopefully as his dad sat down at the far end of the couch.

His dad sighed, rubbing his eyes and digging in his pocket. "Here." He tossed Stiles' phone to him and leant back, legs crossed. "And yes, I'm ungrounding you, but there are conditions. I want you in by 11pm sharp if you go out. Any later than that, and there'll be trouble."

Stiles nodded, his brain already working furiously to think up ways of getting around this new, completely over the top curfew. He switched his phone on, grinning as it beeped continuously for several minutes.

"And I want to know who you're with and what you're doing when you do go out, and if I don't approve of certain people, you're not to associate with them." His dad continued. Stiles nodded again, as he read through a week old text from Erica. "Are you listening to me?"

"I'm serious Stiles, you miss curfew once and it's back to no phone, no laptop, no going out."

"I know! Why do you always assume I'm going to break your rules?"

"Because I know you. I wish you'd stop joking around about this son, I want to be able to trust you again, I really do, but it's going to take time to get there after everything that's happened recently."

"I get it dad, I want you to trust me again as well." He shoved his phone into the pocket of his shorts to stop himself getting distracted. "I am sorry you know. I don't mean to be such a fuck up."

"Watch your language." His dad tutted. "And that's not what I think you are. I think you've had a hard couple of months and you were acting out. You aren't the first kid to do that and I'm damn sure you won't be the last; hell, I'd be out of a job if you were. I just want you to promise me you'll stick to the rules for now and keep up your appointments with Dr. Monkton."

"I promise."

"Good, now get out of here. I'm fed up seeing you moping around the house."

Stiles leapt to his feet, grinning.

"You sure you don't want to talk about me coming off the adderall?" He grinned as he started up the stairs.

"Don't push it Stiles." His dad shouted.

. o o o .

Stiles' life largely returned to normal once he was no longer grounded, although only for a given value of normal; the 11pm curfew certainly impacted on his ability to get dragged along to pack meetings by Scott, who had begrudging joined Derek's pack as a show of solidarity to the alpha pack. Stiles still found himself lying on a semi-regular basis about who he was with; he was pretty certain that no matter how much he abided by his dad's rules, hanging out in abandoned buildings with Derek Hale would always be a big no-no.

"Dad, I'm going to the mall." Stiles called as he rushed through the hall way, skidding on the rug and stumbling into the front door. "See you later."

"Are you forgetting something?" His dad asked, appearing in the doorway, Stiles' keys dangling from his index finger.

"Thanks dad." Stiles made to grab the keys, only to have them pulled up and out of his grip.

"With?"

"Huh?"

"Who are you going with?"

"Who do you think, dad. Scott and Isaac." Stiles reached for his keys again, grinning when his dad handed them over.

"I'm glad you're making more friends." His dad called as he walked out of the kitchen, tossing his keys in the air and catching them as he went. He fumbled his catch, keys clattering loudly on the hardwood floors.

"What do you mean, making more friends?" Stiles asked, trailing back into the kitchen. "I've got plenty of friends."

"I know you do, it's nice to see you hanging out with Isaac as well as Scott. And I think it's good of the both of you to include him in your plans. He's had a rough time."

"It's more me getting included in their plans and I still feel like I'm crashing them half the time." Stiles muttered, sitting down at the breakfast bar beside his dad. "I don't think Isaac likes me all that much." He folded his arms on the table top, leaning down and resting his chin on them.

"I'm sure he does." His dad replied, reaching across and rubbing his back. "He just doesn't know you all that well yet."

"But I keep trying with him and he just acts like I'm being weird." Stiles pouted. "And I'm pretty sure him and Scott are doing loads of stuff without me."

"Well you can come on a little strong sometimes." His dad said cautiously. "Just be yourself, stop trying to force it."

"But what if Scott decides he likes Isaac better as a friend than me?" Stiles asked in a small voice. "Cause that's what it feels like is happening and I don't know how to stop it."

"Give it time, son." His dad replied, continuing to rub his back. "Don't forget it probably feels odd for Scott as well right now. It's a big change for him too, having Isaac move in with him. Maybe when Isaac's emancipation comes through things will settle down a bit."

"I guess." Stiles answered, getting to his feet and pulling a face. "I better go, if I'm not there on time, they'll probably forget all about me and wander off."

"You going to be home for dinner?"

"Nah, we'll probably just hit up the food court. " He replied, shoving his keys into his pocket. "See you later."

"Have fun." His dad said, getting up and pulling Stiles into a hug. "Try not to let it get to you too much."

"I won't."

"Love you son."

"I love you too dad. Don't go ordering takeout though, just 'cause I'm not going to be in for dinner! I'll know if you have!" He called over his shoulder as he left the house.

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